The most critical positions – such as systems administrators and application developers – are also the most difficult positions to fill. Georgia’s technology decision makers also say their most important technology initiatives for 2012 are mobile/wireless projects.

More hiring is planned; a survey of Georgia’s technology decision makers found that 71 percent plan to increase hiring over the next year and 85 percent plan to increase hiring over the next five years.

Georgia’s technology jobs pay more than the average non-technology job. Workers earned average wages of more than $81,000 in 2011, nearly 85 percent more than the average state worker.

Technology salaries are rising in the state, with 63 percent of Georgia’s technology decision makers expecting wages to increase again this year. The direct payroll was more than $20.5 billion in 2011.

Georgia needs more technology talent to meet the growing demand. Companies in the state currently have more than 4,000 open technology jobs.

57 percent of respondents said they currently have technology position openings and about one-third said they have difficulty filling these open positions due to a lack of technology talent.